Michael Vick - WTF? . . .

[Bullwinkle925]

don't know if anyone has posted about this or not - but what in the world possesses anyone to own/have/run a dog fighting ring? side effect of 'roids' perhaps???

what a jerk.

[grace0418]

1. Especially someone who has the opportunity to get out a lot of agression on the football

field. Apparently that's not enough for him. He has to take it out on poor dogs. I don't know what's worse, that he'd run a dog fighting ring or that he'd shoot or electrocute the dogs that didn't win.

"Jerk" doesn't even cover it.

[smtpgirl]

5. Dude is probably a prima donna anyway,

notice that he didn't play that much in the 2006 season, I have written him off!!

I'll go with Jason Campbell (Redskins), at least he is up standing.

Gotta change my avatar soon.

[Joe Fields]

2. sub-human. how unfortunate, especially when looked upon by some as a role model.

It's the worst attributes of the hip-hop/rap celebrity street cred craze.

[smtpgirl]

6. I'll cheer for Snoop ANYDAY

[Joe Fields]

18. Why?

[LSK]

26. I didnt even know it was part of hip-hop craze??

:wtf:

[idgiehkt]

28. that is a very recent development

in the last decade or so.

That is why these guys need to be busted, so it doesn't become even more entrenched. It is not an activity rooted in black society per se in the U.S.

[frankly_fedup2]

3. If you want to file a complaint with Nike, one of Vick's sponsors that is

going to make him rich, email them at

http://swoosh.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/swoosh.cfg/php/enduser/ask.php

This man deserves to live on the street with the poor strays people throw scraps at.

[idgiehkt]

4. Thanks. Also here is the one for the humane society

https://community.hsus.org/campaign/US_2007_dogfighting_nfl2/nqod5jwnj?

This isn't a side effect of anything but greed. Vick's outfit was especially cruel about how they put the animals to death that were not 'good fighters'; apparently they electrocuted them, hung them to death, or slammed them into the ground repeatedly until they died.

I don't know why $130 million bucks can 'buy' the cruelty out of people...I guess some folks are miserable p.o.s.'s no matter what.

[smtpgirl]

7. What sucks is that Clinton Portis ok'ed this!!!

And then he redacted his coments the the POST


http://blog.washingtonpost.com/dcsportsbog/2007/05/clinton_portis_endorses_dog_fi.html


Don't think I'll pick Portis in my fantasy league either!!

[idgiehkt]

9. yeah, it's on the redskins site too

http://www.redskins.com/news/newsDetail.jsp?id=26335

Really shows how compartmentalized people can be when they are exposed to this stuff as kids and the adults around them don't have an appropriate reaction to the violence and cruelty. They shut off the part of themselves that tells them that the animal is a being in pain and the act is wrong. I think this is how some sociopaths are made, instead of born. People can also be situational sociopaths too I think, if they didn't get proper mirroring and validation as children about certain things.

[Bullwinkle925]

22. done . . .

thanks for the link.

[Wapsie B]

8. Damn........between him and his brother Marcus

that is one dysfunctional family.

[idgiehkt]

10. wow

he does have quite a record.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marcus_Vick

[pokerfan]

15. Marcus != Michael

[idgiehkt]

11. here it is on the smoking gun site

at the bottom of the page next to the red arrow it talks about how one of Vick's cronies, after 'consulting' with Vick, hosed a dog down and electrocuted it
http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/years/2007/0717072vick12.html

[pokerfan]

12. It's a cultural thing, I'm told

[idgiehkt]

13. what Vick did is a felony

I think this law was recently passed, carrying animals across state lines for the purpose of fighting them.

It may be cultural to an extent but once one has an $130 million contract one's culture is not the same that one grew up in.

It's an industry.

edit: okay I get you are responding in earnest to the OP.

[Nevernose]

14. Slavery was/is "cultural" too

That don't make it right.

[pokerfan]

16. Slavery involved human beings, not dogs

This guy on ESPN, Steven A., was arguing that it is cultural and that there would be a huge uprising from certain "populations" if this trial is allowed to continue.

I don't agree with that position, but there it is.

He also went on to say that any crackdown on steroid use in golf would be perceived by the same group as racist, because of Woods.

But these are not his views, of course.

[lukasahero]

21. So?

That's a lame excuse and I will never believe that people are superior in worth and value to animals. We used to believe the same about whites v. blacks and men v. women. Isn't it time we acknowledge that simply thinking we're superior, doesn't make it so?

"The Greatness of a nation and it's moral Progress can be measured by the way it treats it's animals." -- Mahatma Gandhi

[idgiehkt]

24. Quite wrong

Dog-fighting crosses all racial, economic and cultural boundaries, and to suggest otherwise is racist. The fact that a multi-millionaire like Vick engages in it is proof of that.

here is a recent bust of one of the nation's most respected dog-fighters and breeders, Floyd Boudreax, who is a white man
http://www.hsus.org/press_and_publications/press_releases/louisiana_federal_law_enforcement_raid_property_of_floyd_boudreaux_one_of_nations_most_notorious_dog_fighters.html

(Floyd is on the right)

Russell Simmons (another African American multi-millionaire) blog entry from yesterday:
http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=100344771&blogID=289557901
(snip) We are hopeful that authorities will take the appropriate action against anyone found guilty of an atrocity as serious as dogfighting, and we will evaluate and monitor the prosecutors and judges responsible for protecting the innocent and helpless. Every animal has the right to live without fear and pain. It is our job to do whatever we can to ensure this basic right for all animals, and we intend to do just that! Let's give law enforcement and animal welfare professionals, who are on the front lines of battling violence and cruelty in every form, our active support in their quest to elevate our society.



Dogs are fought in many cultures on probably every continent. Economics and race do not play a part in determining who fights dogs; just like other kinds of gambling it is an activity that crosses all racial and cultural boundaries. To try to say that dog-fighting is a 'black' activity is innaccurate and serves neither Vick or the defenders of dog-fighting since they know that is false better than anyone.

[stuntcat]

17. I saw pictures

last night on the news of dogs found at his place, along with dozens of fresh graves.

oh no but an indictment doesn't equal a conviction! he's innocent until proven guilty!!

People are repeating that at DU and everywhere else online.. I hope people are just having a hard time swallowing it because it's so unbelievably bad, not that they're trying to excuse the way he treated all those animals. I've lost faith in many people lately, fellow Democrats defending what he's done is the last straw for me, I'll switch to the Green party soon.

[Kajsa]

19. I'm with you, Stuntcat!

He will get a trial and due process of law.

He had the dogs hosed, drowned and electrocuted when
they could no longer " perform".

He had HOW MANY dogs?
Over 60- just for the purpose of fighting each other to DEATH?!?

And this asshat should remain in the NFL, making millions with
no penalty to his career?

Ah, NO!

Please sign the Humane Society action page- link, above.
( and here)

https://community.hsus.org/campaign/US_2007_dogfighting_nfl2/nqod5jwnj

Enough is enough!!!

:grr:

[cwydro]

20. Completely agree with you Stuntcat.

On every point.

[idgiehkt]

23. as far as I understand, the indictment was for conspiracy

I think it will be easily proved that his "company" is guilty of what it is charged of, talking animals across state lines for the purpose of fighting them, despite the cruelty contained in the charges. I think Nike is gonna drop him, I certainly hope so. It seems to me that they must have made deals with the people that testified about the manner in which the dogs were killed, at Vicks behest...they might be working their way up and it's been said that Vick might make a deal as well. I hope he dosen't get off; if he doesn't serve time it will set a very bad precedent.

btw where did you see pictures?

[stuntcat]

25. pictures were on PBS

on Newshour last night. They showed pictures of the property, doghouses, fencing, chains.. And they showed Vick's dogs being saved, the faces of some of them were so turn up, just full of scars, some missing an eye. They said that the way the dogs fight (after they've been raised to be fighting dogs of course) is by clamping onto each other and holding on with their jaws. Some fights have gone on for hours like that, with dogs falling asleep while clamped onto each other. The guy describing this spent years watching it undercover for a movie he made that shows what happens with the dogs and what a big deal it is with so any people.

If you scroll down on this page, looking under Thursday you can click 'streaming video' it's hard to watch though-
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/newshour_index.html

[idgiehkt]

27. Thanks, I'm listening

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/sports/july-dec07/dogfighting_07-19.html

I admire this guy Bobby Brown. The animal welfare/rights movement would be nothing without folks like them...there is no way in hell I could do what he has done. What a hero.

[stuntcat]

29. watching his last night..

This interview just made me cry, he IS such a hero